Team KABM
by supernova708
Summary: Team KABM (Kaboom) is a Shade Academy team known for their explosive performances in the field. Too bad they can't afford to work anywhere near a city. Or a village. Or near anything of value. Follow one of Vacuo's most destructive (and financially strapped) Huntsmen teams in recent memory.
1. Chapter 1

Today marked the first giant leap for Kalinin Kesvena becoming a huntress. Today was the day she would be officially a first-year student at Vacuo's Shade Academy. Today was the day her growth spurt would finally arrive despite already being seventeen. Today was the day she could look in a mirror and say without a doubt she had no regrets today, tomorrow, or any other day… two out four isn't too bad, right?

If there was one thing Kalinin regretted today, it was deciding to take an airship instead of a train to Shade Academy. It wasn't that she disliked flying, she would love nothing more than be able to fly herself; nor was it something lame like air sickness. Kalinin just felt uneasy just loitering while someone else was piloting and more than likely not thinking about how the lives of themselves and their passengers was essentially in their hands. She actually never understood why she is uncomfortable having others fly her around, it's something she had to begrudgingly accept.

Said acceptance vanishing like a dead Grimm as the ship experienced mild turbulence. Kalinin eyed the emergency doors at the back the airship with gears already turned in her mind. The future huntress shambled forward, avoiding the concerned looks of her fellow freshmen. Whether that concern was because of her shambling, the nervous laugh she was making, or both was none of her concern; Kalinin was going to get off of this ship one way or another. Even if opening the emergency doors somehow caused the ship to crash, the other prospective students were sure to have some way of handling a ten-plus thousand foot drop and the pilots probably had parachutes or something, right? The girl reached for the door… to only freeze when a firm hand placed itself on her shoulder. Kalinin turned her head, and only her head. to meet hand's owner.

Standing directly behind her was a woman with a fair complexion who was significantly taller than her, not that was saying much, probably average height by most standards. She was blonde and sported a hairstyle that made Kalinin think of her dad's attempt at an over-comb, but longer and shaved on one side instead of balding. Similar to the owner's grip, her face seemed firm, not showing any emotions. This was a surprise to Kalinin as most people would have at least reacted to someone turning their heads a full one-eighty, but the woman's poker face stood.

"Are you alright?" the blonde asked, her firm grip released and her expression turned into a weak smile.

Kalinin turned the rest of herself to meet the stranger and answered with a grin, "Yeah, just want to get out of this airship as soon as possible."

"Well, I think you're in luck, we're almost there."

The woman nodded her head to the right and took a step back as Kalinin moved to the glass pane of the airship. The campus of Shade Academy was in plain sight as the ship gradually approached the drop-off zone. In hindsight, jumping out of an airship when it was this close would have been pretty embarrassing. The short one turned around to regard the woman who stopped her from doing something stupid.

Looking more intently, the blonde wore a lot of gold or gold-colored materials, from her boots, steel-toed, by the way, to her necklace with signet rings attached, along with a white muscle shirt and cargo pants. Speaking of muscles, by the Creator, she was ripped! She could probably bench press the airship _with_ the passengers still inside even without Aura.

Kalinin held out her hand and grinned again. "Thanks for earlier. I'm Kalinin Kesvena."

"Bertha Zuckers." Bertha took the offer and shook her hand briefly.

"What primary combat school did you attend?"

"Sanctum and yourself?"

"Self-taught. What made you decide to go here instead of Haven?"

"That is a subject I'd prefer not to get into," the muscled woman took a moment to clear her throat before continuing, "So, self-taught, hmm? I take it you have a less than conventional weapon then?"

"Sure do! But I want that to be a surprise for the Initiation."

The ship finally landed and everyone on board gradually shuffled their way to the doors.

* * *

Zuckers took note of Kesvena as the latter made her way off the airship. From the way the girl in question acted on the way over, one would have normally thought she was prone to airsickness or had a fear of flying. But Zuckers knew better there was a reason she was trying to open the emergency door; the fact that Kesvena had worn what can be described as a red and white jumpsuit, albeit with some sort of wrapping around the torso, only raised further suspicion. The red-violet-haired child was without a doubt up to something and Zuckers was determined to find out what. That would be easier said than done as the child disappeared into the mass of students, using her diminutive stature to fade into the crowd. That clever trickster. Regardless, the short one wouldn't be too hard to find later on; Zuckers resigned, hefted a large metal cylinder and a duffel bag from the floor of the ship, and made her way to the main building on campus.

It wasn't hard to miss; the building dwarfed all the others by a landslide. Not to mention the roof flared out far beyond the building and gave it the appearance of a tent; a tent with giant orbs of light on the top, anyway. The design was mostly fitting, given the academy's name. Zuckers began to sweat as she stood in front of the tented tower.

The sweat wasn't because of being in awe or anything along those lines; the weather seemed to call for extreme heat, despite the school year beginning in the fall. Mistral's high temperatures were a far cry from what is presumably a low for Vacuo. A handful of her peers didn't seem to disagree with this thought as they and herself briskly paced for sanctuary.

The act made it easier to discern the locals from the transfers. Zuckers noted a couple of individuals leisurely strolling in spite of wearing jackets, hoodies, and the occasional scarf. The biggest stand out was a pair a ways behind Zuckers, a boy and a girl, standing under a massive shield as though it were a parasol; it wasn't so much the shield itself that stood out, but the fact that neither person was actively holding the shield as it spun above them.

The girl was about the same height as Zuckers but an average figure and olive complexion. Her hair was a brown briar, tangled with hairs sticking out at points. Her outfit was, on the other hand, comparably tame: A blouse with a pink-blue gradient, jeans of a similar blue, and brown wedges. Her face was obscured by the unruly hair, but it was still apparent she was conversing to the boy next to her all the while absently playing with her Scroll.

The boy, however… seemed familiar; Zuckers slowed her pace until they were almost side by side to get a better glimpse of him: Tall to the point of looking awkward proportionately, black hair with bits of grey, dark-green eyes and fangs that were exposed even when his mouth was closed…

"Messer?" Zuckers inquired as she placed herself in front of the shielded pair and walked backwards.

The brunette turned her head slightly to the woman in front of her and the tall boy. Her hands still on the Scroll. The boy tapped a finger against his lips, presumably in thought. He answered the query with one of his own, "Bertha? I thought you were going to Haven?"

"Change of plans. Who's your _friend_?"

There was a bit more edge in those words than Zuckers had intended. If the other two noticed, it didn't show.

"She's-"

"Aichi Seiten," the brunette interjected, "And I wouldn't say we're friends. I hope we can do better than that before the Initiation."

Seiten parted her hair to reveal her face and gave a wink with a deep red-eye. The curtain closed afterwards. At this point, they were into the shade. The shield retracted into itself and set itself onto the brunette's forearm; at that time she put away her Scroll.

"I'll… uh… see you guys inside."

Messer dashed off and his lanky form partially vanished into the crowd.

* * *

"So how do you know Schwalb?" Aichi asked of the strapping blonde.

"Same hometown," Bertha curtly answered as the two of them continued to the main hall.

"Childhood friends?"

"No."

"Classmates?"

"No."

"Lovers?"

"...No." Finally a crack in the stoicism.

"Hmm, what a shame. I guess there's no accounting for good taste."

"...Who I do or _do not_ take interest in is none of your concern."

The amazon had taken great care in choosing her words and maintained poise.

"Who says it was your tastes I was talking about?"

The two of them stopped walking and Aichi took a step into the other woman's personal space. The brunette continued, "Well-groomed, strong, caring, if how you acted on the airship means anything. Beautiful."

"Any man who catches your eye should feel privileged. Or any woman," she added in a more sultry tone. She caressed Bertha's face with a hand while the woman being regarded stood in stunned silence. Said silence was broken with a light tap to the strapping woman's face and Aichi had cheered, "Well, if you're not interested, I'll be sure to take good care of him!"

She skipped backwards and set herself forward with a twirl. The brunette flashed a grin to Bertha. The muscled woman clearly did not take the teasing well as she made a mad dash to the teaser.

Aichi unfurled her shield and pulled out her Scroll. As soon as an edge of the shield touched the ground, it began to spin forward taking its owner with it and sped away from the angry woman.

* * *

Schwalb stood around in the main hall and heard a guttural roar and a howling laughter from outside. The boy shuddered and could only hope he would never have the misfortune of meeting the owners of the noise.

An explosion was heard from outside.

He could only pray he would never have the misfortune of meeting the owners of the noise and whoever set off the explosive. Schwalb ran a hand across his already slicked back hair and readjusted his clothes. Between his grey thermals, his forest-green fatigues and boots, and his assortment of knife-loaded belts there didn't seem to be anything out of place.

"Hey, are you a vampire?" a disembodied but feminine voice asked.

"Oh, dear Creator! Who said that!?" Schwalb demanded as he jumped back and hit a pillar. And stayed on the pillar... and _stood_ on the pillar. He darted his eyes and head to find the source of the voice. He looked almost directly below and saw a girl waving at him. The lanky boy jumped down from his spot and made a brief cough. "Sorry about that. I've been a bit on edge since I got here."

"I was too on the way here, don't worry about it," the girl replied. She was shorter than he realized. Then again he was pretty high up on the pillar.

"Were you the one that asked if I was a vampire?"

She nodded in confirmation. _Much shorter_.

"It's the fangs, isn't it?"

Another nod; this time accompanied with a small shrug. The man held a hand to his face.

"I'm not a vampire. Just a bat faunus."

She looked rather disappointed but also more relaxed by the answer. Before the conversation could continue, the headmaster... the headmistress stepped onto the stage of the main hall and gave an energetic speech marking what would be the rest of the school year and directing the freshmen to where they will be sleeping before the Initiation begins.

Schwalb turned back to his speaking partner to only find she was gone. Presumably somewhere in the crowd of students already leaving the main hall. As he was about to join the crowd, the boy felt a tapping on his shoulder. He did his best to contain his surprise and turned around to meet a curtain of hair more frayed than earlier and partially singed(?). The curtain was parted enough to unveil a grin from the owner which was paired with a thumbs-up. Schwalb pinched out a lone flame still a top the brunette's hair and gave a confused smile and thumbs-up in return.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, this marks the beginning of what I'm sure to be a** **great (** **ok) story. For this story I'm trying out different "habits" in the narration as the focus shifts between characters. If it works great, if not, I'll just go with a more conventional writing style. Reviews and constructive criticisms are always appreciated. At least when I get around to reading them.**

 **Until Vacuo is explored a bit more in the show, this fic will be sticking as closely as possible to the Canon. Which shouldn't be too hard as I won't be doing anymore than touching on Canon events to give a timeframe or something. And for the record, the events in this fic take place around the same time as the show. So yeah. Thanks for reading.**


	2. Chapter 2

Last night was normal to Kalinin, to say the least. It started off normally enough: Had dinner at the mess hall, gathered at the gymnasium right after, killed some time with a Scroll game before lights out, joined a grid of sleeping mats, bags, and the occasional tent. Those jerks. And then everyone went to bed. Nothing really out of the ordinary other than people sleeping in tents indoors. Seriously, who does that when there are other people sleeping in the same room?

It was the morning after that things got weird to her. Bertha barged into the gym, looking like death warmed over her and then held the funeral right after. Making mention of that would probably be a bad idea, considering her more than hostile attitude, she's clearly out for blood. Kalinin was glad not to be the one receiving that ire or at least assumed she didn't.

After changing out of her nightwear, an oversized white shirt with red dots scattered in no particular pattern and red shorts, and putting her night things into her bag and, consequently, her locker, she went to go get breakfast in the mess hall.

The short one managed to snag a plate of eggs and toast for a light meal. The irony of food choice was not lost on her but was lost on anyone that didn't know her well. Finding a seat was easy this late in the morning and Kalinin managed to find seats available next to the guy who was _obviously_ a vampire, who decided to wear a t-shirt instead of a thermal sweater. Odd choice considering the weather was being a bit more chilly than usual; probably not a local or something. Across from him and diagonally to Kalinin was a brown-haired person who was probably a girl if what little of their figure Kalinin could see past the covering has anything to say about it. The stranger's hair was a closed umbrella and also wet. She probably didn't dry her hair all the way after a shower or something. The girl's clothes reminded Kalinin of a cloudless sunset.

Kalinin gave a quick wave to to Schwalb and took a seat after given a return wave.

"Either of you know what happened to the girl who took a dirt nap?" Kalinin asked before buttering her toast.

"I think you just answered your own question," the umbrella responded as a cereal-loaded spoon passed into her hair. Yet, not a drip of milk touched or stayed on her hair.

"True, but I mean how or why?"

Schwalb put a finger up and interjected, "I'm sorry, who took a dirt nap?"

"Oh!" Aichi chirped after swallowing, "The strapping woman from your hometown! Bertha, if I recall correctly. She apparently attacked another student for taunting her and lost. Anyway, we should hurry and do what we must before Initiation, hmm?"

Aichi pulled up a holographic clock using her Scroll to emphasize what little time is left.

"We're still going to talk about this later, right?"

"Of course."

The trio began digging into whatever they have opted for as a meal and went their separate ways to prepare for the Initiation; Kalinin still wondered how Aichi ate without moving all that hair in the way, but that was a mystery to be solved another day. Instead, she went back to the locker room to gather her gear.

A short while later, she, as well as the other students, found themselves on a Bullhead; while blindfolded. Needless to say, Kalinin did not take this well; she winced at every tilt, turn, stop, and sway the vehicle made and had to use all her willpower not to remove the blindfold too early. And also to not jump off the Bullhead immediately.

Someone, presumably the headmistress again, hard to tell with them having to yell over the Bullhead, informed everyone that this year's Initiation will involve us exiting via falling out of the Bullhead into designated but randomly chosen points at Lime Lake Labyrinth and finding our way back to the Bullhead on the other side.

The lake had long since dried and a combination of natural and manmade canyons transformed the place into its maze-like state with only one walkable exit. How it was reached was fair game to any method as long as four conditions were met: No one was allowed to climb over or severely tamper with the walls, we were to partner with the first partnerless person we made physical contact with, we were to retrieve an item that was revealed once everyone has landed, and we were to exit the maze in fours if the remaining number of students allowed for it; however, who we exit with does not necessarily make a team. Additionally, there were Grimm that had made the canyons their home and should be dealt with when encountered.

For all Kalinin cared, although the instructions were stowed away for later, she would solo fight a Deathstalker with a butter knife if it meant getting out of the Bullhead sooner; unbeknownst to her, some of the other students were already getting her wish granted to them. Lucky them, in a way.

* * *

As soon as the Initiation started, Zuckers planned on kicking Seiten's ass. Not because of being buried alive, mind you; the brunette was mostly acting in self-defense and Zuckers respected that. And Seiten had the courtesy to leave her attacker's head out of the dirt as well as in the shade while Zuckers was incapacitated. The reason for her bloodlust was because the shield-user's line of questioning and behavior the previous night was clearly a test; she had to have known Zucker's reason for coming to Shade or she wouldn't have asked about the former's association with Messer: She knew about the assignment. For that she had to be silenced. Not by having her killed, the Academy was sure to have ample surveillance, but by beating her into submission.

On a related note, did Seiten tell Messer of the assignment? Zuckers was certain of it; why else would Messer had ran off? That wink must had been a signal to leave. What having left would accomplish, Zuckers was uncertain, but she was determined to find out.

And if the increasingly frequent pauses of the Bullhead and the flashes of sudden breezes indicated anything, she was going to find out soon. Zuckers' blindfold was removed and her view was comprised of the headmistress' visage, who then stepped back after showing the blindfold in her hand.

Looking at her face, one wouldn't think of her as anywhere above middle-aged, but her hair told another story. She wore a simple braid that rested on a shoulder with bunches of silver and grey strands adorning what would had been completely orange hair. She smiled and placed a finger on her own lips to ask for silence. After confirming Zuckers wouldn't speak, the headmistress abruptly nudged Zuckers out of the Bullhead with an immaculately polished boot.

Zuckers' Scroll beeped and a quick peek of the screen alerted the falling woman where to land in the labyrinth until the Initiation officially started or else be disqualified. Zuckers stowed away her Scroll and whipped out the large metal cylinder that was as long as the owner's arm, was as wide as her head, and was strapped to her back. She pulled at a slot along one end and out from came a handle that locked into place with a click. A firm grasp and a quick twist of the handle caused both ends of the cylinder to open. It was still a seconds to the ground. Zuckers positioned herself to a nosedive and wound up a punch with the arm holding the cylinder. It was when she was about to make contact that she swung.

There was an explosion at the landing zone.

And Zuckers rolled out of it with a bead of sweat, but without a scratch. The cylinder turned out to be an oversized rocket launcher as white smoke wafted from the end closer to the wielder's shoulder.

A dozen Beowolves approached the huntress-in-training, likely attracted by the noise.

Zuckers flashed her attention to her Scroll, the Initiation had yet to start. She grumbled and prepared to fight until the start; the Beowolves had already made their approach with charges or leaps. The muscled woman fired at the closest groups, blowing away more than half with ease. The first Grimm that managed to be reach Zuckers were met with a side swing of the rocket launcher, the longer end arcing to the Beowulf. The collision ended with a satisfying splat of the Grimm's head. The remains of the group met similar fates as they attempted to attack

Once certain, no Grimm were standing, the rocketeer brushed off any dirt on her person and replace a cartridge at the end away from the handle. The moment of isolation vanished when Zuckers' Scroll beeped again; the Initiation had officially begun and the items to be found revealed.

Once reading what the items were, the blond cursed, "This is-"

* * *

"-too easy," Aichi claimed to no one, "Finding a cased tarot card should be a breeze. Just gotta make sure I find to partner with someone I like."

And with that, the brunette pulls out her Scroll and sets her shield on the ground, flat side down; it whirred to life and drilled into the dirt underneath. Once it reached around ten feet, the shield repositioned itself to one side of the hole and drilled forward. Aichi hopped into the resulting hole and maintained pace behind the shield.

Nothing of interest happened on the walk aside from the occasional Grimm find its way into the tunnel, but the tight spacing made dispatching them an effortless task as a flick on a Scroll and a turn of the shield-drill. Aichi did have to dig small venting holes and check her position every now and then, but that was about the greater extent of her efforts.

It wasn't until a good half-hour that something finally happened; the brunette was digging her latest vent that she had heard an explosion. She surfaced and looked beyond her shield to find the source of the noise: It was long, a little-bit-tan, and handsome standing off against a pair of Ursai. If the lingering black smoke and the dozen or so knives littered around the area was any indication, there were more Grimm earlier. Schwalb didn't seem to be making any moves against the Grimm and instead chose to stand as far up the maze walls as legally possible, probably tired from fighting. The Ursai themselves paced underneath, presumably waiting for the boy the come down or for a new target to arrive.

Aichi smiled at her good fortune and decided to help the statuesque lad before her. She dove back underground and tunneled her way underneath one of the Ursai. The curtained woman then tapped away at her Scroll and from her shield flew out two small spiral drills. The drills then shot through the ground and bored their way into the Ursa's head and chest, slaying the beast; they then maneuvered their way into the second, repeating the process. Aichi decided not to reveal herself just yet, wondering why the boy decided to stick around and rest when he could have just left by running along the wall.

Once the fallen Grimm had began dissipating, Schwalb walked down from his position and went to pick up a pair two pieces of glass on the ground. As he reached down for them, the ground beneath it gave way, taking the pieces with it; and a hand, an olive and dainty hand, shot through the resulting hole. The hand grabbed his and pulled him in, throwing off any semblance of balance; the boy shut his eyes and braced for the oncoming impact with the ground.

* * *

To Schwalb's surprise, the ground around his face was softer than the rest… and smelled like shampoo? The confused huntsman-in-training slowly opened his eyes to the sight of Aichi's, her hair out of the way of her face. Hers were closed though, enjoying whatever sensation the owner was experiencing. To top it all off, their lips were locked together in a one-sided passion. Mutual passion, as he started to enjoy the sensations coming to his mouth, chest, and the hand still holding his classmate's.

Aichi broke the kiss and the handholding and pulled herself out of the hole, all the while brushing off dirt from her person. At least, if there were dirt on her person in the first place. How that was possible when she had been underground for only her knows how long is an unsolvable mystery.

The woman asked, no, quipped, "Are these your cards, _partner_?"

She revealed the two pieces of glass in her hand, encased within either of them a tarot card, an ace and a two of cups.

* * *

A/N: Sorry, Schwalb. You'll get more story focus soon (eventually).

I'd like to think I'm getting more comfortable at writing the narration habits that occur depending on the character focus, correct me if I'm wrong.

Anyway, it was come to my attention that I will be needing to populate Shade eventually. I already have the faculty squared off and there is also Teams NDGO and BRNZ for fellow students, but it doesn't hurt to have options. So, if you have any Shade Academy student OC teams you'd be comfortable sharing with me to use here and there, that'd be fantastic. Just be warned, that does not guarantee I will be using your OCs if you submit any. But that'll be a bridge to cross later.

And just for the heck of it, anyone who can guess what the naming theme of Team KABM is by let's say before chapter 5, will have their OC team be a recurring and involved cast for the rest of the story. The team comp and everything that comes with it must still be approved by me.

I'll be giving three hints: 1) Schwalb and Bertha being from the same hometown was influenced by the theme. 2) The spelling of everyone's names were altered to avoid the theme being too blatant. 3) Incidentally, the countries associated with the name origins bring to mind early World War 2 alliances/pacts.

And, if it helps, a recap of the team members full names: Kalinin Kesvena, Aichi Seiten, Bertha Zuckers, and Schwalb Messer.

And as usual, reviews and constructive criticism are always appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

The art on the cards were pretty simple: school logo on one side in white on a orange background and a minimalist illustration of the card with the name written in fine penmanship-esque font.

"I still don't see what the big deal is; they're just cards, right?" Kalinin said aloud to no one, holding up two glass-encased cards in the air, a three of cups and a page of cups. She stowed them away in a pouch on the front of her jumpsuit and continued to muse the meaning of these cards. No such insight came; this was literally the only time in the girl's life she regretted not taking up an interest in fortunetelling like her father. "Maybe I'll run into someone who knows. And maybe someone who knows a good way to go through a maze."

Kalinin shrugged and hiked her way to where she assumed the exit was; although, she was more than certain she passed this area before, if the dents in the ground had anything to say about it. As she rounded a corner at a T-intersection, she bumped into a something white. Kalinin hoped the owner was partnerless; she took a step back and lo and behold, it was a lone Bertha, clothes dirtied but otherwise no worse for wear.

Kalinin made no attempts to hide her excitement as she squealed and stepped back in to embrace the strongwoman, nuzzling the recipient's abs. They were surprisingly soft despite how well-defined they were, but that may have been just the shirt. Regardless of the comfort Bertha was capable of giving, Kalinin was just glad to have someone more than competent on her side.

The shorter huntress then realized she might have been a bit too affectionate at this stage in their partnership and released her partner. A glance to Bertha's face showed a bit more confusion than anything else. With maybe perhaps a blush appeared across her face or sunburn; the latter more likely, as Kalinin noticed upon further inspection her partner's arms matching the color on her face. Kalinin made a cough to get her partner's attention and in one hand offered a flask she pulled out from a side pocket. In her other hand, she held up a pouch labeled, "In case of Sunburn."

* * *

The two of them took a seat on a large rock nearby and the rocketeer tentatively took the flask first and noted it was cold to the touch despite the heat. She opened the cap to take a whiff of it. There was the faint smell of cranberries.

"Don't worry, it's just a sports drink," Kesvena assured her, "Water can only do so much against dehydration, y'know? And there's a slot at the bottom to put a strip of Ice Dust in to keep it cold."

Zuckers took a sip… and then downed the drink immediately. She tensed a little when she felt cold hands on the sunburnt sections of her free arm, but reminded herself Kesvena insisted on applying the sunburn ointment for her. The child's hands were surprisingly both deft and gentle as they glided across the reddened skin. The strongwoman's arm already felt relieved as the redness already started to fade into a light pink.

"I'm not a child," the small one muttered bitterly. The sudden shift in demeanour took Zuckers off guard, causing her to drop the flask onto her lap. "Don't think I don't notice how everyone sees me when they see my size and personality. How you saw me when we were on the airship coming to Shade."

Zuckers could do nothing but wince at the truth of this statement and at Kesvena being a bit rougher with the ointment application on the other arm. To distract the both of them, she asked, "Is that why you decided to be a Huntress? To look more mature?"

Kesvena's hands took pause and then resumed with their more gentle caresses. "No. That's just a bonus. I just wanted the freedom to work at my own pace. What about you?"

"...A promise."

"Care to elaborate?"

"When I'm ready for it," Zuckers smirked.

"Okay. I'm just about done with your arms anyway. I'll let you do the rest as we go."

Zuckers nodded and the two of them rose from their seats. They proceeded to walk in a direction. A direction she was familiar with.

"I actually came from there, nothing but a dead end," Zuckers announced.

"...Shit," Kesvena grumbled and tried marching off in a different direction.

"Didn't you come that way?"

The girl stopped and stared at the ground in defeat.

"Do you want to know the simplest way to go through a maze?"

Kesvena directed her stare to the muscled woman and nodded.

"Walk while keeping to on one side at all times," the blonde explained, "Remember this place only has one exit and if we keep to one side , we'll eventually get out. But before anything else, we still need to find cards."

The short huntress contemplated the explanation and her eyes shined in realization. "Bertha, you're a genius! Oh and don't worry about the cards, I already picked up two before I ran into you."

Zuckers rolled her eyes at first, but was surprised when Kesvena handed her the Page of Cups. She pocketed the card and led the way by taking the path they haven't been to yet and kept her hand on right side of the wall.

* * *

"So do we just wait for another pair to come by and leave with them?" Schwalb asked his shield-wielding companion. He was answered with a small shrug.

There was more or less an unspoken agreement amongst the hunter-trainees to stay in pairs and to just wait at the gate once they found their own cards. The only notable group to not follow this was a pair of two pairs, one male and the other female, Schwalb and Aichi met only minutes ago.

The male pair had one literally dragging the other, who was unconscious for reasons unknown to Schwalb, by the collar and the female pair looked as though the taller of them was ready to kill somebody, even her short partner, on the slightest provocation despite her cold expression. Actually, she probably could freeze somebody over with her disposition, although she eased up whenever she interacted with the more active male among them. Schwalb could not help but pray those four would be on the same team, for the sake of the short girl. Incidentally, the shorter of the four, Blaze, was a fellow Sanctum graduate and she and Schwalb shared a brief moment of reminiscing their mutual moments during their enrollment in the primary combat school as Aichi conversed with the other two.

They eventually went their separate ways, the pair to look for the exit and the four continued their search for cards. Right before they left, Blaze requested to exchange contact info with Schwalb in case something big happened. The lanky teen saw no problems with this and did so right away, figuring it would be nice to have someone from home to talk to, despite the source having some sort of gambling addiction he soon realized as they talked; there was also Bertha, but if what Aichi told him about yesterday was true, Schwalb felt it would be best to keep her partner and the strongwoman away from each other for now.

The information the groups shared was enough for the lone pair to make their way to the exit with few complications aside from Grimm and what was sure to be a dull wait. When they first found the exit, Schwalb gave it an incredulous look; he could only assume the same of his partner as her face was covered again but never pointed in the direction of the exit or him afterwards. Or at least as far as he could tell her head never pointed in his or the exit's direction. A silence loomed over this section of the maze with only the ambiance of gunfire to break it in increasingly fleeting moments. The pair hadn't exactly spoken to each other that often during the short time they partnered up since their _intimate_ moment. Well, they did communicate when they had encountered Grimm. And there were also the few times they encountered other students which consisted of exchanging information on the maze's layout or counts of students still in the maze, which appeared to be slowly dwindling since the second hour of Initiation.

The two of them leaned against the rock face of the maze, the exit right in front of them. The exit was blocked off by a steel gate and a banner taped over it. The gate seemed to have been there for quite some time with its various scratches and its color fading in spots. Along the gate were four slots spaced out from one end of the gate to the other in a perfect line. A bit of fiddling pointed to the slots being for the cards they collected, glass case and all. The banner had a black and white checkered pattern on it and "Finish" emblazoned across it in big red lettering. The contrast of the harsh steel and the gaudily designed banner was disconcerting no matter how many times he looked at it.

He looked back to his partner to see she had lodged her shield into a preexisting gash in the wall and sat underneath the impromptu awning as far from Schwalb as possible. AIchi also had her Scroll out again and was rapidly typing something. While it was tempting to join his partner under the shade and to perhaps see what she was up to, the tall teen resigned himself to suffer under the ever shrinking shade of the wall and hoped another pair would show up soon; then maybe after the Initiation he could come to an understanding with the brunette over what transpired.

* * *

Underneath the curtain of hair was a face that was expressing what could only be one emotion: Panic. Aichi Seiten was unable to come to terms with the moment she had with her handsome partner. She admittedly hadn't actually planned to kiss him, not on the lips anyway but on the forehead or anywhere else really. Truth be told, that was also her first real kiss; her first kiss done on a botched, if not vague, attempt at teasing. Aichi sank further into the ground. The plan was simple: Act a bit more flirty, start dating someone that's fine with my hair, enjoy my four years in romantic bliss, and maybe brag about it to the folks back in Atlas; but no, sitting in awkward silence was a great alternative.

It did not help that Schwalb would stare at the troubled girl every so often. Aichi did try to subtly offer shade under her shield by scooting a bit to give her partner room, but that seemed to only make him a bit more wary. His expression full mystery. She sank even further to the ground. If only he was as easy to read as Bertha; Aichi hoped not to see her again any time soon, even if she was strapping. The brunette did find it odd how easily she beat the blonde beauty. Despite how well she wielded that iron rod of hers, it seemed like she never fought against another person before, always conscious of each strike made by either person. Aichi would talk to Schwalb about that… after the Initiation.

The silence was drowned out by an explosion and a scream nearby. The pair turned down the path leading to the exit and saw nothing. Schwalb continued to peer down the path, but Aichi turned to the wall behind her and activated her Semblance. She saw beyond the wall Bertha and the petite girl from the mess hall. They were fighting off a pair of Death Stalkers while effectively unarmed.

* * *

A/N: Not just one, but two Death Stalkers, oh my. Somewhere out there, I'd like to think Professor Port would be proud of what is going to happen next chapter.

Anyway, thank you, Matt Cyr, for providing me with your OC team who will not be adressed by name until later.

As always, reviews and constructive criticism are always appreciated.


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